From August through December 2015, beachcast bird survey programs reported increased deposition of common murres ( Uria aalge) on central and northern California beaches, but not on southern California beaches. Coastal wildlife rehabilitation centers received more than 1,000 live, stranded, and debilitated murres from Sonoma County to San Luis Obispo County during August-October. Approximately two-thirds of admitted birds were after-hatch-year birds in emaciated body condition and in various stages of molt, with extremely worn plumage...

A new Isospora (Apicomplexa:Eimeriidae) species is described from a silvereye (Zosterops lateralis) in Western Australia. Sporulated oocysts of this species are spherical, 24.2 (23.1-25.2) × 23.3 (22.8-23.9) μm, with a shape index (length/width) of 1.02, and with a smooth bi-layered oocyst wall, 1.2 μm thick (outer layer 0.9 μm, inner 0.3 μm). A polar granule is present, but the oocyst residuum and a micropyle are absent. The ovoid-shaped sporocysts are 16.1 (15.7-17.3) × 10.5 (15.7-17.3) μm and have a shape index of 1...

OBJECTIVES: The incidence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria in wildlife animals has been investigated in order to improve the knowledge on the spreading of clinically relevant antimicrobial resistance genes. The aim of this study was to report the first draft genome sequence of an extensively drug-resistant (XDR) Pseudomonas aeruginosa ST644 recovered from a Magellanic penguin with footpad infection undergoing rehabilitation process. METHODS: Genome was sequenced on Illumina NextSeq platform, using paired-end reads (150bp)...

BACKGROUND: Wildlife rehabilitation centers routinely gather health-related data from diverse species. Their capability to signal the occurrence of emerging pathogens and improve traditional surveillance remains largely unexplored. This paper assessed the utility for syndromic surveillance of raptors admitted to The Raptor Center (TRC) to signal circulation of West Nile Virus (WNV) in Minnesota between 1990 and 2014. An exhaustive descriptive analysis using grouping time series structures and models of interrupted times series was conducted for indicator subsets...

Wildlife rehabilitators are at risk of zoonotic diseases because they often have prolonged contact with many species of wildlife and their bodily fluids. Raccoon roundworm (Baylisascaris procyonis) is a common zoonotic parasite of raccoons that has the potential to cause severe or fatal neurologic disease in a broad variety of hosts if the eggs within raccoon faeces are ingested. We administered an online survey to wildlife rehabilitators to assess their knowledge regarding aspects of transmission, biology and disease caused by B...

Aspergillosis is a fungal infection that primarily affects the respiratory tract. Amphotericin B has broad antifungal activity and is commonly used to treat aspergillosis, a fungal pneumonia that is a common sequela in oiled waterfowl as well as other birds in wildlife rehabilitation. Pharmacokinetic parameters of nebulized amphotericin B in an avian model have been reported, but those of direct intratracheal delivery have yet to be established. The objective of this study was to evaluate if a single 3 mg/kg dose of liposomal amphotericin B delivered intratracheally using a commercial atomizer would achieve plasma and lung tissue concentrations exceeding targeted minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) for Aspergillus species in adult mallard ducks (Anas platyrhynchos)...

Streptococcus phocae is a pathogen of marine mammals, although its pathogenicity remains poorly understood. Recovery of this bacterium from asymptomatic carriers suggests that it is an opportunistic pathogen. We investigated the role of S. phocae in naturally occurring disease and its significance as a pathogen based on postmortem investigations. Between 2007 and 2012, 1,696 whole carcasses, tissue samples, or both were submitted from the northeastern Pacific and Arctic Canada for diagnostic testing. Streptococcus phocae was cultured from phocids (n=66), otariids (n=12), harbor porpoises (Phocoena phocoena; n=5), and sea otters (Enhydra lutris; n=2)...

Freshwater ecosystems provide many ecosystem services; however, they are often degraded as a result of human activity. To address ecosystem degradation in the Laurentian Great Lakes, Canada and the United States of America established the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA). In 1987, 43 highly polluted and impacted areas were identified under the GLWQA as having one or more of 14 Beneficial Use Impairments (BUIs) to the physical and chemical habitat for fish, wildlife and humans, and were designated as Areas of Concern (AOC)...

The aim of this study was to establish hematologic and plasma biochemical reference intervals for clinically healthy cinereous vultures ( Aegypius monachus ) in a rehabilitation setting before release. Animals used in this study were cinereous vultures hospitalized in a wildlife center located in the province of Gyeongsangnam-do, the Republic of Korea. Blood samples were collected from 31 cinereous vultures before their release between 2011 and 2014 at the Gyeongnam Wildlife Center. Complete blood count and plasma biochemical analyses were performed within 2 hr of the blood sampling...

BACKGROUND: There are few studies of careful examination of wildlife casualties in Wildlife Rehabilitation Centers. These studies are essential for detecting menaces to wild species and providing objective criteria about cost-benefit of treatments in those centers. The release rate is considered the main outcome indicator, but other parameters such as length of stay at the center and a cost-benefit index expressed as number of released animals per euro and day, could be used as reliable estimators of the rehabilitation costs...

PURPOSE: Beak and feather disease virus (BFDV) is a circovirus and the cause of psittacine beak and feather disease (PBFD). This disease is characterized by feather and beak deformities and is a recognized threat to endangered Psittaciformes (parrots and cockatoos). The role that non-psittacine birds may play as reservoirs of infection is unclear. This study aimed to begin addressing this gap in our knowledge of PBFD. METHODOLOGY: Liver samples were collected from birds presented to the Australian Wildlife Health Centre at Zoos Victoria's Healesville Sanctuary for veterinary care between December 2014 and December 2015, and tested for BFDV DNA using polymerase chain reaction coupled with sequencing and phylogenetic analyses...

During 2016, 153 gulls, including 64 Larus fuscus and 89 Larus michahellis, were found crippled in south Portugal. They died in Wildlife Rehabilitation and Investigation Center-RIAS and were necropsied. Reighardia sternae infected 2 (3%, n = 64) L. fuscus and 4 (4%, n = 89) L. michahellis. Molecular analysis confirmed the morphological identification on the basis of total body length, maximum body width, length of anterior and posterior hooks, total length of oral apparatus, and other features of oral apparatus of R...

Pangolins are ant specialists which are under intense threat from the illegal wildlife trade. Nutrition has notoriously been their downfall in captivity and is still an issue in regards to rescue and rehabilitation. We analyzed the nutrient content of diets used by institutions that are successfully keeping Asian pangolins and to assess the variety of the ingredients and nutrients, compared these with the nutritional requirements of potential nutritional model species. We performed intake studies at five institutions and also had data from three other institutions...

The aim of this study was to determine the resistance phenotypes of selected enteric bacteria isolated from non-human primates at a wildlife-human interface. Bacterial isolates from faecal samples of non-human primates at two wildlife rehabilitation centres in South Africa were screened for the presence of Escherichia coli. The biochemical characterisation of E. coli and E. coli-like bacteria revealed both adonitol positive and sorbitol negative strains - a unique characteristic of Escherichia fergusonii and Escherichia coli K99...

The Oil Pollution Act of 1990 establishes liability for injuries to natural resources because of the release or threat of release of oil. Assessment of injury to natural resources resulting from an oil spill and development and implementation of a plan for the restoration, rehabilitation, replacement or acquisition of natural resources to compensate for those injuries is accomplished through the Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) process. The NRDA process began within a week of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, which occurred on April 20, 2010...

Lead is considered a highly toxic contaminant with important impacts to bird wildlife. Griffon vultures (Gyps fulvus) are a sensitive indicator of the level of environmental contamination due to their position at the top of the food chain and their dependence on human activities. The aim of this study was to assess susceptibility to lead intoxication in Griffon vultures admitted to Wildlife Rehabilitation Centers (WRC), measuring blood lead levels and determining if blood lead concentrations are related to clinical signs, hematological, biochemical or radiographic findings...

Although wildlife rehabilitation and translocations are important tools in wildlife conservation in New Zealand, disease screening of birds has not been standardized. Additionally, the results of the screening programmes are often difficult to interpret due to missing disease data in resident or translocating avian populations. Molecular methods have become the most widespread method for diagnosing avian malaria (Plasmodium spp.) infections. However, these methods can be time-consuming, expensive and are less specific in diagnosing mixed infections...

AIMS: The aims of this study were to analyze the causes of morbidity and mortality in a large population of seabirds admitted to the Tafira Wildlife Rehabilitation Center (TWRC) in Gran Canaria Island, Spain, from 2003 to 2013, and to analyze the outcomes of the rehabilitation process. METHODS: We included 1,956 seabirds (133 dead on admission and 1,823 admitted alive) in this study. Causes of morbidity were classified into nine categories: light pollution (fallout), fishing gear interaction, crude oil, poisoning/intoxication, other traumas, metabolic/nutritional disorder, orphaned young birds, other causes, and unknown/undetermined...

The Oil Pollution Act of 1990 establishes liability for injuries to natural resources because of the release or threat of release of oil. Assessment of injury to natural resources resulting from an oil spill and development and implementation of a plan for the restoration, rehabilitation, replacement or acquisition of natural resources to compensate for those injuries is accomplished through the Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) process. The NRDA process began within a week of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, which occurred on April 20, 2010...